"Manhattan, Kansas" is a song written by Joe Allen, and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

and released in March 1972 as a single. The song peaked at number 6 on both the U.S. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart and the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Country Tracks chart in Canada.

Content

The song's name refers to the city of

Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city and county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. As of the 2020 cen ...

, which in the song is the hometown of a young girl who has a baby after being used and abandoned by the baby's father. The song tells of her leaving town (to Denver), and washing dishes to support herself.

Chart performance

Other versions of the song

Donna Fargo Donna may refer to the short form of the honorific ''nobildonna'', the female form of Don (honorific) in Italian. People *Donna (given name); includes name origin and list of people and characters with the name * Roberto Di Donna (born 1968), Ita ...

on her debut number 1 country album The Happiest Girl in the Whole U.S.A. (May 1972) *

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as " You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My M ...

on her 1972 album

Here I Am Again ''Here I Am Again'' is the twenty-first solo studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Loretta Lynn. It was released on October 2, 1972, by Decca Records. The album features liner notes written by Lynn's mother, Clara Butcher, who ...

Jody Miller Myrna Joy "Jody" Miller (November 29, 1941 – October 6, 2022) was an American country music singer. "Home of the Brave" and "Queen of the House" are her well-known albums. She is a recipient of the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal ...

on her 1972 album ''There's a Party Goin' On'' *

Sammi Smith Jewel Fay Smith (August 5, 1943 – February 12, 2005), known professionally as Sammi Smith, was an American country music singer and songwriter. She is best known for her 1971 country-pop crossover hit "Help Me Make It Through the Night", whi ...

on her 1974 album ''The Rainbow in Daddy's Eyes''

References

1972 singles Glen Campbell songs Donna Fargo songs Loretta Lynn songs Jody Miller songs Sammi Smith songs Capitol Records singles 1972 songs Song recordings produced by Al De Lory {{1970s-country-song-stub